This morning I did a Land for Wildlife assessment, on a property on the Bellarine Peninsula overlooking Lake Connewarre. The Lake is another hidden treasure on Geelong's outskirts, a large lake almost invisible because there are no major roads nearby. It's a tidal lake, with the Barwon River running in one end and out the other before it gets to the estuary at Ocean Grove. Swans, pelicans, spoonbills, ducks and small waders are prolific.
The landowners on the property we assessed have fenced off the saltmarsh on the edge of the lake, beautiful low-growing saltmash that only shows its beauty when you get down close to have a good look. This area gets covered when the Barwon is in flood, or at a very high tide when the lake is full. We saw several types of glasswort plants, but I wouldn't be confidant about identifying to species level. The red colouring of the beads is spectacular. A hand-lens reveals even more beauty. This area has been a favourite with the endangered Orange-bellied Parrot - they love glasswort seeds - but they haven't been seen this winter unfortunately.
